Who comes first?
With the Olympic Games approaching in 2012, Barnabas is creating a range of resources to help primary schools think more deeply about the ideals and values of athletic competition, and also how the lessons of sporting challenges might apply to real life in school, at home and beyond.
'Who comes first?' is the theme of our new creative arts-based Barnabas RE day, our two-hour INSET package and our teaching resource book, all of which are designed to get children asking searching questions about positive mental attitude, its source and how we can find out more.
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- Barnabas RE Day - 'Who comes first?'
- INSET Session - 'Who comes first?'
- Teaching resource book - Who Comes First?
Barnabas RE Day - 'Who comes first?'
- What's your school got planned for the lead-up to the Olympics?
- Will you be running a special 'international' athletic-themed week?
'Who comes first?' is our new creative arts-based Barnabas RE day that explores sporting values and challenges through the eyes of Christian faith and belief. Each workshop encourages pupils to ask searching questions and reflect on what this could all mean for them. Discover what we can learn from the original Greek games - and the Biblical authors who saw them at first hand!
Each workshop will involve a busy mix of games, reflective storytelling and participative drama, appropriately crafted for age and ability. Workshops normally last 50 - 60 minutes and will require use of a large indoor space. If requested, a whole-school assembly can be included. The cost is £275 for the whole day, including approximately four workshops and an assembly.
All schools booking this day will receive an additional free teaching resource book - Who Comes First? Inspiring stories from the history of the Games - to explore the themes further in RE/PHSE lessons and assembly time. Worksheets to accompany this book are available online - find out more (PDF).
For further details and to book a day, contact us.
INSET Session - 'Who comes first?'
Creative ideas for exploring the Christian faith in relation to Olympic values
Background
Barnabas in Schools has been leading INSET sessions and running creative arts-based Barnabas RE Days for primary schools in the UK for over ten years. 2012 offers schools a unique opportunity to both celebrate the international dimension of sport, and explore sporting values and their relationship to personal and community development.
In addition, the Games provide us with stories of outstanding dedication and achievement that have strong links to the principal teachings of the Christian faith, and so can provide teachers with a way to explore Christianity creatively in the classroom.
Content
Using key elements of Christian teaching and particular Bible stories, the INSET session 'Who comes first?' will:
- look at the history of the Games in their New Testament context and their subsequent development.
- unpack the links between what Christians believe and the seven official sporting values of Respect, Excellence, Friendship, Courage, Determination, Inspiration and Equality.
- explore Bible stories that relate to issues of winners and losers; the relationship between individual excellence and team spirit; the dynamic tension of competition and cooperation; as well as questions of fairness and respect.
- sample a range of creative approaches for sharing these stories with children both in the classroom and in collective worship.
- make relevant connections between RE and the wider curriculum, in particular PE, PHSE and Citizenship, SEAL and Values education.
- reflect on what the Games can teach us about what Christians believe, and how it influences their choices in life.
All schools booking this INSET session will receive an additional free teaching resource book - Who Comes First? Inspiring stories from the history of the Games. Worksheets to accompany this book are available online - find out more (PDF).
INSET sessions are usually two hours long and will be delivered by members of the Barnabas Schools Team. Each session costs £150 plus travel. For further details and to book a session, contact us.
Teaching resource book - Who Comes First?
Who Comes First?
Inspiring stories from the history of the Games
Chris Hudson
Who Comes First? is a cross-curricular classroom and assembly resource for Key Stage 2 RE teachers. It contains material for seven lesson plans and three assemblies.
Respect, Excellence, Friendship, Courage, Determination, Inspiration and Equality - what do these values actually mean for our schoolchildren?
Who Comes First? gives teachers a chance to explore these big ideas with their classes in RE lessons, encouraging pupils to ask searching questions about sporting values, respond to true-life stories in a variety of ways, and reflect on the opportunities and challenges that an athlete's sense of purpose could possibly have for their own lives. PE and Games can sometimes be part of an unconscious 'hidden curriculum' that celebrates the achievements of the talented few and ignores the less-talented many. Here's a chance to explore the other side of the winning tape!
Chris Hudson is an experienced teacher, author and trainer, dedicated to promoting high-quality teaching and learning in primary schools. He provides regular INSETs for schools on a variety of themes related to the Bible and Christianity, together with Barnabas RE Day storytelling, drama and music workshops for schoolchildren.
You can download the illustrations from the book separately - download now (PDF) .
Worksheets to accompany the book are available on line - find out more.